updated 11:50 am EDT, Mon March 17, 2008

Moto Drops Two Executives

Motorola has quietly dropped two of its key executives, the company revealed today in a statement to the Wall Street Journal. The company's European head of Mobile Devices, Mike Fenger, has been replaced by former regional sales VP Stephen Nolan; Larry Raymond comes from the retail chain Sears to occupy the role of treasurer, replacing Steve Strobel. The shift is "part of an overall plan to swiftly transform the senior executive team," according to a company spokeswoman.

The statement essentially confirms a rapid purge of the company and its mobile division in particular. After Greg Brown assumed the role of CEO at the company following Ed Zander's departure in November, several top staffers have departed with little to no explanation from the company, including its marketing chief as well as its worldwide Mobile Devices leader, who left after only eight months in the top spot.

Most of the exits are believed to be tied to Motorola's rapid decline in marketshare for cellphones, which dipped 38 percent in the last quarter of 2007 and is likely to have declined over the current quarter in favor of rivals such as Nokia and Sony-Ericsson.